Feathers of Bravery

Jessica

My eyes watered when I had given the sweet little boy I had saved one last hug. I thought about the purple and green marble he had given me as a sign of thanks. Sure we had marbles back home in Neros for decorations or games but this one was neither. I had never seen one like it. When I held it, it was always warm. Though when Aihla or Meylo would hold it they said it felt cool. It was meant to guide and protect me. In what way I did not know. I just hope I understood it when the time came.

Our flight to Meer, the eastern town that had also been plagued with bandits, was so far uneventful. No Kijod chasing us down or bandits trying to shoot us out of the sky. Another bright side was that the flight was also ten times cooler. There was no humidity from the forest or the overbearing rays of the sun. Instead we were greeted with salty fresh breeze and once in a while some rain.

Nothing too bad and heavy. It felt like miniature massages on our wings but never hard enough to cause us to stop flying and find cover. The winds weren't that strong either even though they picked up the closer we got. In total it took about maybe three days and a night to get there. Just because the weather didn't bring us to a stop doesn't we travelled the entire time. With Meylo's limited vision during the night we had to stop for a while until the moon shone bright enough for him to see.

Both Aihla and I asked him if he would like us to do a spell for him to have our vision for a little while but politely declined. He'd rather us save our energy and magick until we really needed it. Which absolutely made sense. Last time Aihla nearly crashed to the ground with how much she exerted herself and we still don't know anything about what happened the following night.

I don't know which version of me is more worried. The friend or the letahr. Neither one of them is happy that her best friend who is like a sister to her and her charge are constantly in danger now. She didn't like seeing her fall from the sky or wake up to the sounds of her screaming in pain from heavens knows where. Only for her scream even more when we tried to touch her. Then finally collapsing once we got her to her nest.

I didn't even know what to tell Meylo. I knew he was just as worried and concerned as I was. The poor crow was barely introduced to friendly owls, then magick and now one of his friends was going through unknown pain. Even recalling some of the teachings of my healing mentor, nothing at the moment was fitting. I saw no wound on her other than the bruises and scrapes from the fight and no one else was in the room so I know that no intruder came in.

There was the faintest smell of magick, like fresh roses, but no rotting smell or sourness. So that rules out any dark magick that may have been placed on her. That should have been a clue, the fresh roses. History spoke of the old warriors who had given their lives in sacrifice and the energy force that was dispersed smelled of freshly picked roses.

Of course that would require me thinking that someone would have sacrificed themselves and sent their life energy and magick to her. And yet, that still wouldn't account for the pain. None of the recorded accounts spoke about there being any pain or discomfort. The only expectance was this surge or ripple that was felt throughout the entire body.

The more I continued to speculate the more nervous I got. I kept it all to myself for the time being. I wished I could talk to Meylo about it but he wouldn't be able to understand the surge, sacrificial energy or anything else. I wouldn't bring this up to Aihla since it would cause her more stress than what she's already dealing with.

Our flight was interrupted when we were met by four pelicans, one of which had a bloodied wing.

"Are you three fighters or healers?" the main with a blue streak across his face.

"Hello dear friends. I am Aihla and this is my letahr, we are of Neros. This is our friend Meylo of Baldir. We are indeed fighters and my letahr is well versed in aid. What assistance do you need?" my princess answered. Obviously not introducing herself and Meylo as royals.

"Please help us. Last night we were attacked by pirates and we have many wounded."

"We are more than happy to pay. Whatever riches you desire!"

The other two spoke. Like the first, they both had blue streaks across their faces. The one with the wounded wing had a pink or reddish streak. I can see his eyes fluttering and his flapping is beginning to strain. So I maneuver around to face him.

"Hello, my name is Jessica and I am the one who is versed in aid. Lets fly down to the trees so I can take a look at your wing, make sure nothing is broken or getting infected. Your three friends can take mine to your town. We'll meet them there." I tell him.

He doesn't even bother to respond or nod. He just begins his descent a little to fast for my liking and perches. With a nod to Aihla, I go to land beside him while they fly on ahead.

"Ok, I'm just going to feel around and see if there's any abnormalities. Let me know if you have any pain."

I begin to stretch out his wing to its fullest. He winces a little and there's some blood that is still flowing from his wound. Slowly feeling my way around, I can feel a few bumps but those seem to be from blunt trauma since his only reaction is his eyes shutting tighter but no recoiling. Once I get closer to the wound to examine it I can see why he was straining more than just it's bleeding. There was a piece of wood embedded in it. Most likely from an arrow that was pulled out incorrectly.

Carefully removing it, I place a few leaves from the tree to stop the bleeding. It's not enough since we have to fly back which will cause it to open again.

"Do you trust me?" I ask him.

He nods.

"It's a very simple stitching spell. It should last long enough for us to fly back. You'll need to rest and I will check on you once I see what others I can help. The wound is not as bad as I thought considered how you were flying with it with a piece of wood inside. Can I perform the spell now?"

Another nod.

"Melius Scissa" I speak the words as I hover above the wing. As the magick pours, the skin begins to knit together with a dark yellow covering it almost like a large bandage. He looks at it and flaps it when I ask him to see if his mobility is hampered in any way.

"Looks all good. You ready to fly back?" I ask.

Not surprising, he only nods. Seems to be his only form of communication for the time being. I hope that the spell holds for the distance.